# Is "Uncle Fred in the Springtime" by P.G. Wodehouse a First Edition?

> **Quick answer.** A first edition of Uncle Fred in the Springtime by P.G. Wodehouse (Doubleday Doran, 1939) is identified by: First US edition, Doubleday, Doran, New York, published 18 August 1939, one week ahead of the UK Herbert Jenkins edition of 25 August 1939. US Doubleday, Doran (18 August 1939), with "First Edition" stated on the copyright page, is the true first; the UK Herbert Jenkins edition followed on 25 August 1939.

**Checklist — a true first has these:**
- First US edition, Doubleday, Doran, New York, published 18 August 1939, one week ahead of the UK Herbert Jenkins edition of 25 August 1939
- The first American issue states "First Edition" on the copyright page
- Bound in green cloth with brown lettering and decoration to the spine and a grey-stained top edge; plain endpapers, octavo, with a list of Wodehouse titles facing the title page and [vi],292 pages
- The first-issue dust jacket is illustrated by Peggy Bacon and should retain its printed price (present, though price-clipping alone does not demote a correct first)
- The first Uncle Fred novel and a Blandings Castle story
- Publisher imprint reads Doubleday Doran
- Not a book-club edition (see below)

| | |
|---|---|
| Author | P.G. Wodehouse |
| Publisher | Doubleday Doran |
| Year | 1939 |
| True first | US edition |
| Format | Hardcover (trade) |
| Key point | First US edition, Doubleday, Doran, New York, published 18 August 1939, one week ahead of the UK Herbert Jenkins edition of 25 August 1939 |
| Book-club edition exists? | No |

## Points of issue
First US edition, Doubleday, Doran, New York, published 18 August 1939, one week ahead of the UK Herbert Jenkins edition of 25 August 1939. The first American issue states "First Edition" on the copyright page. Bound in green cloth with brown lettering and decoration to the spine and a grey-stained top edge; plain endpapers, octavo, with a list of Wodehouse titles facing the title page and [vi],292 pages. The first-issue dust jacket is illustrated by Peggy Bacon and should retain its printed price (present, though price-clipping alone does not demote a correct first). The first Uncle Fred novel and a Blandings Castle story.

## Is this the true first?
US Doubleday, Doran (18 August 1939), with "First Edition" stated on the copyright page, is the true first; the UK Herbert Jenkins edition followed on 25 August 1939.

## Telling it from reprints & book-club editions
No book-club issue; confirm by the stated "First Edition", the green cloth with brown spine lettering and grey top-stain, and the Peggy Bacon jacket.

## Source
New Mexico Literacy Project — Is *Uncle Fred in the Springtime* by P.G. Wodehouse a first edition? https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/first-edition/uncle-fred-in-the-springtime
CC BY 4.0. Part of the Canonical First-Edition Points of Issue dataset (https://newmexicoliteracyproject.org/api/first-edition-titles.json). Last reviewed 2026-07-04.